The term ‘algae’ translates as ‘seaweed’ in Latin and describes a large group of organisms that can be found in saltwater, freshwater, in soils and in a wide variety of other habitats.

Algae exist as single celled or multicellular organisms that vary in size from microscopic to macro-scopic – marine seaweeds are actu-ally complex forms of macroscopic algae and some can grow to 50m in length. Most algae are able to trap the sun’s energy by photosynthesis.

The classification of algae is too complex for the scope of this article and like many academic topics is subject to frequent changes. For example, detailed study of the so-called ‘Blue-green algae’ has resulted in them being re-classified as Cyanobacteria – a phylum of bacteria-like organisms that are photosynthetic.

For the purpose of this article we shall concentrate on those types of algae that cause problems in ame-nity situations, factors encouraging their development and methods of control.

Algae can cause a variety of problems in water with appearance being high on the list in amenity situations, where water bodies,

such as ponds and lakes, are an important part of our natural attractive landscape. Filamentous algae produce a thick mat that floats on the surface of ponds and lakes. These mats, which are sometimes referred to as ‘blanket-weed’ or ‘cott’, are particularly unsightly and will also cause problems in block-ing outlets, pumps and sluice gates where water is used in irrigation or processed for drinking.

They make navigation difficult for waterfowl on static water and on slow moving waters in canal systems and can restrict gaseous exchange at the surface with con-sequent reduction in water oxygen levels that can harm fish and other aquatic creatures.

A group of macroscopic algae known as the Stoneworts (Chara spp. and Nitella spp.) are often mistaken for varieties of rooted, submerged aquatic weeds. Stone-worts are highly developed forms of algae that have branches arranged in whorls and can grow to 1m in length.

They will often form large masses, floating below the surface of the water. The plant can become encrusted with salts extracted from the water and when handled has a ‘brittle’ feel – hence the name.

Cyanobacteria are unicellular organisms that can grow in large numbers under the right condi-tions, producing an algal bloom that some people refer to as ‘pea soup’! In a static body of water this will cause the dissolved oxygen to become depleted, with consequent harm to any vulnerable aquatic life.

Although Cyanobacteria are no longer classified as ‘true algae’ there is a group we refer to as the ‘Green water algae’ that includes many single celled species with the ability to produce a green algal bloom in slow moving or static water.

Causes of algae problems in water

The main cause of algal develop-ment in a body of water is an excess of dissolved nutrients (nitrates and phosphates) usually leached from nearby land. Like higher plants, algae need the same growth stimulants; a supply of nutrients, warmth and light.

Strategies to Control algae.

There are no longer any chemi-cals available to control algae in water in Europe. However, dealing with the problem is a simple matter

of taking steps to deny the algae one or more of these growth stimuli.

Logically the first step is to consider ways of removing excess nutrients from the water. In the long term we should try to identify the source of nutrients leaching in to the pond or lake and attempt to correct this.

This will be simpler if the source of pollution is under the same own-ership as the pond or lake.

There are many golf courses where the water features are pol-luted by fertiliser applied to other parts of the course. It may be possible to reduce the amount of fertiliser applied to the land nearby and so minimise the nutrients leaching into the water.

Alternatively, conventional fertilisers could be replaced by products with controlled release characteristics.

Over the years fertiliser manu-facturers have developed a variety of techniques for extending the release period of their products to achieve a reduction in clipping yields as well as cutting down on nutrient leaching.

Some products employ a nitrifica-tion inhibitor to increase the period of nitrogen availability while others use organic nutrition sources that cause a delay in nutrient release while microbial degradation takes place to unlock the plant foods and make them available to the plant.

In principle, the use of controlled release fertilisers aims to put much lower amounts of nutrient onto the ground, since there will be less wastage through leaching.

Probably the best type of con-trolled release mechanisms for reducing leaching are the products employing a polymer coating where the nutrients are released in response to temperature alone (e.g. ‘Multigreen’ from Headland Amenity).

In periods of prolonged rainfall the micro-pores on the surface of the coated granules will react to the cold rain by closing up, preventing further release from the nutrient core.

After the rain, surface tempera-ture on the granule will rise and re-open the pores allowing nutrient release to resume.

Controlled release fertilisers are more expensive than conventional feeds but they do have other ben-efits that can reduce labour and machinery maintenance costs, which may help to balance the case for using them to improve the qual-ity of a water features nearby.

The next strategy to consider is the removal of nutrient from water

Algae in ponds and lakes

Graham Paul returns with another opportunity for you to earn more BASIS points

using specially selected species of bacteria that thrive in nutrient-rich water.

There are several manufacturers that can supply bacterial cultures in freeze dried forms (e.g. ‘Lake-Pak’ from Becker Underwood and ‘Pro-Crystal’ from Everris.

They are usually packaged as measured doses in water soluble sachets to make application very simple.

These products can only be used from late spring onwards, when the water temperature is sufficient to sustain the growth and prolifera-tion of the bacteria they contain.

A minimum temperature of 10°C and water pH within the range of 6 to 8 will provide ideal conditions for these bacterial based products to work.

Refer to product manufacturer’s literature for rates of use and re-treatment recommendations, as these can vary with the product.

It will be necessary to measure the approximate volume of the water requiring treatment to determine how much product is needed.

Aeration of the water is beneficial for the development of bacteria so, if possible, use an aerating fountain to enhance the effectiveness of these products.

Measure the volume of water body

The traditional method of remov-ing nutrients from water involves the placement of barley straw bales or ‘sausage shaped’ bunds (made by netting barley straw with the type of machine they use to wrap real Christmas tree at the garden centre) - at strategic points in the pond or lake. Barley straw rots in the water, releasing substances that inhibit the growth of algae. It doesn’t actually destroy algae already growing in the pond; instead, it prevents the reproduc-tion and spread. The breakdown and decomposition of barley straw in the water is thought to release a number of chemicals that react together in the presence of sunlight

MAIn ABoVe AnD InSet ABoVe: Filamentous algae – known as ‘blanket-weed’ or ‘cott’

Multigreen 20-0-32 – coated prill magnified

Bloom caused by Cyanobacteria – photograph by kind permission of Mike Hopwood - wightfishing.co.uk

Measure the temperature – minimum 10°C

JUNE 2012 GI 4140 GI JUNE 2012

to produce hydrogen peroxide – a chemical known to inhibit most species of algae. This is a gradual process that is very temperature dependent; accelerating as the water warms. Once the barley straw treatment becomes effective, it will inhibit algae growth until the straw is almost completely decomposed. As a general rule, the effect of barley straw treatment lasts for about six months.

This method probably works out cheaper than using bacterial treatments but the lake or pond will suffer from an untidy mess left by fragments of rotting straw.

The next method at our disposal is the use of water colorants that filter out the wavelengths of light that are essential to algae for pho-tosynthesis.

There is a choice of either blue or black – both produce effective results. They are available in

liquid or water soluble sachets. The liquid products are applied from the water’s edge whilst water soluble packs can be thrown out to the middle of a large pond or small lake. The colorants will disperse evenly after a few hours. The use of colorants will also reduce light availability for the growth of sub-merged weeds as well as algae. Only products that have been developed specifically for algal control in water should be used, as these will have been tested for safety to fish and waterfowl.

Water colorants will work earlier in the season than freeze dried bacteria and their use will tend to cause a slight increase in water temperature as a result of the coloured material absorbing some of the sun’s energy. It therefore makes sense to use colorants in combination with bacterial prod-ucts as an integrated programme.

CLaIM YoUr BaSIS PoINTS

SELF aSSESSMENT

Use the questions below to check your understanding of this topic. readers can claim Two BaSIS points if the questions are answered correctly, by filling in the form at: www.sherriff-amenity.com/technical.asp?newsid=21

Circle the correct answer(s)

1) Which group of Algae were re-classified as Cyanobacteria?

a) Filamentous Algae b) Blue-green Algae c) Stoneworts d) Unicellular Algae

2) What is the main cause of Algal problems in ponds and lakes?

a) Insufficient sunlight getting into the water.

b) An excess of dissolved nutrients in the water(nitrates and phosphates)

c) High mineral deposits in the water

d) The lack of chemicals used for their control

3) What is the minimum water temperature recommended when using bacteria to remove excess water nutrients?

a) 10°Cb) 15 °Cc) 8° C d) 18.8°C

4) When using the traditional barley straw method of removing algae in water, how long may we expect the effect to last?

a) 6 yearsb) 18 daysc) 6 monthsd) 18 months

5) What chemical is thought to be responsible for controlling Algae using the barley straw method?

a) carbon dioxideb) methane c) ethanold) Hydrogen peroxide

ABoVe: Pond treated with ‘Lake-Pak’ and ‘Blackout’ 2hrs after applicationrIGHt: the same pond 2 weeks after application.

42 GI JUNE 2012

FeAtUre

Raising the stakes in marking golf course hazard linesIntroducing an innovative linemarking partnership that is anenvironmentally acceptable alternative to aerosol markers

The PainterFreeLance is the perfect way to mark hazard lineson golf courses offering speed, ease of use andflexibility of application. Designed with simplicity and speed in mind, anECO hand pressurised spray bottle is connected tothe lance and carried using a shoulder harness.The spray bottle is filled with the paint and pumpedto the required pressure. Flow is controlled by atrigger assembly on the lance handle.Economical and environmentally responsible, one5 litre pack of Aeroline can mark a 2,500 linearmetre line without refilling (equivalent to 25 aerosolcans!) To clean, simply change the paint bottle forone holding water and flush the pipes through.

The PaintAeroline is the most advanced, ready to use, linemarking paint formulation specifically developed foruse on the golf course. No added water, no mixing,measuring or dilution of the paint is required, andthere are no expensive waste disposal costs. Justpour into the applicator pack and apply direct to thetarget surface. 1 litre of paint will apply a 500metre* linear line. The paint offers a high level of rainfastness that isdurable under a wide range of climatic and groundconditions. It contains no hazardous material andhas a low carbon footprint with minimal negativeimpact on the environment.Three colour formulations white, red and yellow,are supplied in 5 litre plastic containers* Will vary depending on walking speed.

Quick...clean...easy!

Freephone 0800 424919 www.rigbytaylor.com

New technology from Rigby Taylor

Marker_Layout 1 28/05/2012 11:16 Page 1

to produce hydrogen peroxide – a chemical known to inhibit most species of algae. This is a gradual process that is very temperature dependent; accelerating as the water warms. Once the barley straw treatment becomes effective, it will inhibit algae growth until the straw is almost completely decomposed. As a general rule, the effect of barley straw treatment lasts for about six months.

This method probably works out cheaper than using bacterial treatments but the lake or pond will suffer from an untidy mess left by fragments of rotting straw.

The next method at our disposal is the use of water colorants that filter out the wavelengths of light that are essential to algae for pho-tosynthesis.

There is a choice of either blue or black – both produce effective results. They are available in

liquid or water soluble sachets. The liquid products are applied from the water’s edge whilst water soluble packs can be thrown out to the middle of a large pond or small lake. The colorants will disperse evenly after a few hours. The use of colorants will also reduce light availability for the growth of sub-merged weeds as well as algae. Only products that have been developed specifically for algal control in water should be used, as these will have been tested for safety to fish and waterfowl.

Water colorants will work earlier in the season than freeze dried bacteria and their use will tend to cause a slight increase in water temperature as a result of the coloured material absorbing some of the sun’s energy. It therefore makes sense to use colorants in combination with bacterial prod-ucts as an integrated programme.

CLaIM YoUr BaSIS PoINTS

SELF aSSESSMENT

Use the questions below to check your understanding of this topic. readers can claim Two BaSIS points if the questions are answered correctly, by filling in the form at: www.sherriff-amenity.com/technical.asp?newsid=21

Circle the correct answer(s)

1) Which group of Algae were re-classified as Cyanobacteria?

a) Filamentous Algae b) Blue-green Algae c) Stoneworts d) Unicellular Algae

2) What is the main cause of Algal problems in ponds and lakes?

a) Insufficient sunlight getting into the water.

b) An excess of dissolved nutrients in the water(nitrates and phosphates)

c) High mineral deposits in the water

d) The lack of chemicals used for their control

3) What is the minimum water temperature recommended when using bacteria to remove excess water nutrients?

a) 10°Cb) 15 °Cc) 8° C d) 18.8°C

4) When using the traditional barley straw method of removing algae in water, how long may we expect the effect to last?

a) 6 yearsb) 18 daysc) 6 monthsd) 18 months

5) What chemical is thought to be responsible for controlling Algae using the barley straw method?

a) carbon dioxideb) methane c) ethanold) Hydrogen peroxide

ABoVe: Pond treated with ‘Lake-Pak’ and ‘Blackout’ 2hrs after applicationrIGHt: the same pond 2 weeks after application.

42 GI JUNE 2012

FeAtUre

Raising the stakes in marking golf course hazard linesIntroducing an innovative linemarking partnership that is anenvironmentally acceptable alternative to aerosol markers

The PainterFreeLance is the perfect way to mark hazard lineson golf courses offering speed, ease of use andflexibility of application. Designed with simplicity and speed in mind, anECO hand pressurised spray bottle is connected tothe lance and carried using a shoulder harness.The spray bottle is filled with the paint and pumpedto the required pressure. Flow is controlled by atrigger assembly on the lance handle.Economical and environmentally responsible, one5 litre pack of Aeroline can mark a 2,500 linearmetre line without refilling (equivalent to 25 aerosolcans!) To clean, simply change the paint bottle forone holding water and flush the pipes through.

The PaintAeroline is the most advanced, ready to use, linemarking paint formulation specifically developed foruse on the golf course. No added water, no mixing,measuring or dilution of the paint is required, andthere are no expensive waste disposal costs. Justpour into the applicator pack and apply direct to thetarget surface. 1 litre of paint will apply a 500metre* linear line. The paint offers a high level of rainfastness that isdurable under a wide range of climatic and groundconditions. It contains no hazardous material andhas a low carbon footprint with minimal negativeimpact on the environment.Three colour formulations white, red and yellow,are supplied in 5 litre plastic containers* Will vary depending on walking speed.

Quick...clean...easy!

Freephone 0800 424919 www.rigbytaylor.com

New technology from Rigby Taylor

Marker_Layout 1 28/05/2012 11:16 Page 1

as is so often the case these days, there is a bewildering array of utility vehicles to choose from. Put together a few basic requirements, however, and that wide choice narrows.

First up, you have the established Cushman Turf-Truckster from Ransomes Jacobsen, the Pro Gator from John Deere and the Workman HDX models from Toro.

These models are so familiar it is common for them all to be called the same regardless of who makes them; hands up those of you that call a Workman a Truckster, a Gator a Workman and well, you get the point. A key feature of these ‘heavy duty’ machines is that they are designed to do a lot more than

provide a load platform and a pas-senger seat.

These key models have pretty similar capacities as well; the diesel-powered line-up that com-prises the 24hp Pro Gator 2030A rated at 1,182kg, the 26.5hp Workman HDX-D-4WD offering a 1,289kg payload and the 23hp Cushman Turf Truckster offering a 1,293kg capacity. In the real world their overall specifications are broadly similar, with mechani-cal transmissions and a choice of hydraulic packages to suit specific attachments.

It is important, however, to remember that you need to look at these vehicles in the wider context of what you want them to do. The chances are you will want

Maximise your utility budget

Golf courses have really taken to utility vehicles. From Gators to Cushmans and Mules to Workhorses, you see them all over the place. If you have not looked at what is on offer more recently, however, you may not appreciate that the choice of kit on offer has widened. James De Havilland writes...

to consider a range of demount kit that will also fit, such as a sprayer, and it is the easy integration and complete package price of the latter that can have a big influence upon your final buying choices.

It is entirely feasible to specify an ‘off-the-peg’ vehicle based around a utility ‘skid’ that will subsequently undertake key spraying, top dressing and even core collecting requirements. The total equipment package could be more cost effec-tive than an array of trailed and tractor mounted alternatives.

This is an important point as heavy-duty utilities are relatively expensive bits of kit; a price tag north of £20K will make any accountant sit up and take notice, but it is the ability of these tools to work with purpose built attach-ments that can make them a viable buy. Build quality is good too, so expect a long life from well-proven models.

Kitting out a machine with a sprayer is a good example. All the listed models will take a sprayer of

around 750 litres, with boom widths of around 6 to 7m dependant upon model. The sprayer will sit low on the machine, to improve stability, with the weight more evenly spread between the wheels than perhaps would be the case with a trailed unit. The same will apply to a top dresser. When these attachments are not in use, they demount easily and free the vehicle for other work.

The caveat is that there are now keenly priced dedicated sprayers available as alternatives; these we looked at in the May issue. The trick is to work out how much work you will do with a sprayer on a utility. If the unit spends more time fitted to the vehicle than sitting in the shed on its stands you may find it more cost effective to buy a dedicated sprayer. Conversely, if you need to rebuild a bunker and ferry turf and sand around, a utility can often do the job better than a tractor and trailer; you do not have that option if you have gone for a dedicated sprayer.

Alternatively, you could also go

BELOW: Heavy-duty utility vehicles really come into their own when matched to demount kit such as a sprayer or top dresser. When costing vehicles it pays to also price up kit to go with the vehicle too.

Simple, light and petrol powered. There are an increasing number of ‘entry level’ utilities to choose from but factor in running costs if they are going to cover a lot of ground. A more expensive diesel may make better long-term financial sense for some, but by no means all, courses.

The cold spring of 2012 will perhaps be forgotten as temperatures climb, but an enclosed cab can make life a great deal easier for the operator. When choosing a utility, price in various options when making price comparisions.

JUNE 2012 GI 4544 GI JUNE 2012

UtILItY VeHICLeS

as is so often the case these days, there is a bewildering array of utility vehicles to choose from. Put together a few basic requirements, however, and that wide choice narrows.

First up, you have the established Cushman Turf-Truckster from Ransomes Jacobsen, the Pro Gator from John Deere and the Workman HDX models from Toro.

These models are so familiar it is common for them all to be called the same regardless of who makes them; hands up those of you that call a Workman a Truckster, a Gator a Workman and well, you get the point. A key feature of these ‘heavy duty’ machines is that they are designed to do a lot more than

provide a load platform and a pas-senger seat.

These key models have pretty similar capacities as well; the diesel-powered line-up that com-prises the 24hp Pro Gator 2030A rated at 1,182kg, the 26.5hp Workman HDX-D-4WD offering a 1,289kg payload and the 23hp Cushman Turf Truckster offering a 1,293kg capacity. In the real world their overall specifications are broadly similar, with mechani-cal transmissions and a choice of hydraulic packages to suit specific attachments.

It is important, however, to remember that you need to look at these vehicles in the wider context of what you want them to do. The chances are you will want

Maximise your utility budget

Golf courses have really taken to utility vehicles. From Gators to Cushmans and Mules to Workhorses, you see them all over the place. If you have not looked at what is on offer more recently, however, you may not appreciate that the choice of kit on offer has widened. James De Havilland writes...

to consider a range of demount kit that will also fit, such as a sprayer, and it is the easy integration and complete package price of the latter that can have a big influence upon your final buying choices.

It is entirely feasible to specify an ‘off-the-peg’ vehicle based around a utility ‘skid’ that will subsequently undertake key spraying, top dressing and even core collecting requirements. The total equipment package could be more cost effec-tive than an array of trailed and tractor mounted alternatives.

This is an important point as heavy-duty utilities are relatively expensive bits of kit; a price tag north of £20K will make any accountant sit up and take notice, but it is the ability of these tools to work with purpose built attach-ments that can make them a viable buy. Build quality is good too, so expect a long life from well-proven models.

Kitting out a machine with a sprayer is a good example. All the listed models will take a sprayer of

around 750 litres, with boom widths of around 6 to 7m dependant upon model. The sprayer will sit low on the machine, to improve stability, with the weight more evenly spread between the wheels than perhaps would be the case with a trailed unit. The same will apply to a top dresser. When these attachments are not in use, they demount easily and free the vehicle for other work.

The caveat is that there are now keenly priced dedicated sprayers available as alternatives; these we looked at in the May issue. The trick is to work out how much work you will do with a sprayer on a utility. If the unit spends more time fitted to the vehicle than sitting in the shed on its stands you may find it more cost effective to buy a dedicated sprayer. Conversely, if you need to rebuild a bunker and ferry turf and sand around, a utility can often do the job better than a tractor and trailer; you do not have that option if you have gone for a dedicated sprayer.

Alternatively, you could also go

BELOW: Heavy-duty utility vehicles really come into their own when matched to demount kit such as a sprayer or top dresser. When costing vehicles it pays to also price up kit to go with the vehicle too.

Simple, light and petrol powered. There are an increasing number of ‘entry level’ utilities to choose from but factor in running costs if they are going to cover a lot of ground. A more expensive diesel may make better long-term financial sense for some, but by no means all, courses.

The cold spring of 2012 will perhaps be forgotten as temperatures climb, but an enclosed cab can make life a great deal easier for the operator. When choosing a utility, price in various options when making price comparisions.

JUNE 2012 GI 4544 GI JUNE 2012

UtILItY VeHICLeS

left field and buy a dedicated sprayer and a more general-purpose utility vehicle.

The latter need not have the heavy-duty capacity or fixed for-ward speed ability of a big Toro, Cushman or Deere, but if your need is to help move personnel and kit around, an entry-level petrol model may be the way to go. Take Kawasaki Mule 610 and Polaris Ranger 400.

These machines have a relatively low initial purchase price and are reasonably cheap to run, despite the need to run on petrol.

There are also diesel powered models to consider, such as the evergreen Kawasaki Diesel Mule, together with alternatives from companies such as Club Car, Bobcat, Kubota, JCB to name a few.

The key is to establish the dif-ference between basic utility units designed to have a light footprint and modest load capacity and machines that have a bigger payload and the ability to power attachments.

Often overlooked are battery powered electric vehicles. These tend to go in and out of fashion, but there is no denying these tools do have a future.

Polaris, for example are selling increasingly large numbers of its Ranger E, essentially sharing the same chassis as its Ranger 400 sib-ling with the result of it delivering good performance in more extreme conditions.

However, there are other electric models to consider. These include vehicles that can be specified in road legal form, with Ransomes Jacobsen having recently taken over the importation from France of the Mega electric truck range.

This is quite a significant move as Ransomes Jacobsen will no doubt help promote the greater use of this type of vehicle on golf courses. In terms of cost, a road ready electric truck will cost a similar amount of money as a heavy-duty ‘turf truck’; well worth a look.

Regardless of what is on offer, the key to selecting the right utility vehicle is to work out what it has to do.

Heavy-duty models fit the bill per-fectly when used as ‘self-propelled’ sprayers and top dressers, but they may not be the most economical choice as a general carrier.

If you can take the time to shop around and try several vehicles for a few days, you stand a much better chance of choosing the right tool.

When it comes to personnel transport, the key is to look to a lighter utility that can also carry a modest load. Space for essential tools, replacement greens flags, rakes or whatever will soon be exploited, so a large load platform is a help.

ABOVE: Battery powered utilities are not new, but the concept of road legal models has yet to gain as wide acceptance in the Uk as it has on the Continent. the Mega range imported by Ransomes Jacobsen could change that.

LEFT: More serious off-road ability may not be necessary, so check how well a vehicle on turf-friendly tyres performs on fine turf by doing the odd tight turn. All-wheel drive has it pros and cons, even when a proper differential with locking diff lock comes as part of the package.

It really is worth taking the trouble to have a demonstration of alternative vehicles;

Deere Gator and toro Workman controls, for example, have essential features in

common but the designs are more different than the spec sheet suggest.

JUNE 2012 GI 4746 GI JUNE 2012

UtILItY VeHICLeS

top-class roller mowers

the outfrontflail mower

...it’s way outfront!

Mowers for Professionals!

www.wessexmachinery.co.uk A Broadwood International productBritish manufacturing excellence since 1962

Call us for a free demo, for a free brochure oryour nearest dealer today on 01420 478111

in widths from 1.8 to 4.8m

RMX

TGX

GK05

12

Get a step ahead

To see for yourself visit:www.sgmindustries.com/promo_video

with the TB 200 Turf BrushThe ultimate instrength, quality,durability and easeof operation.• Yes it will fill aeration holes• Yes Greenkeepers say you use upto 30% less sand

• By using the brush regularly, every2 to 3 weeks, you can virtuallyeliminate verti grooming

• Use before mowing increasesputting speed and smoothness

“The TB 200 Turf Brush is one of the most effective groomingtools I have purchased in the past twenty years”

“ I never thought there could be anything better than what Iwas using, then you brought me the TB 200 and we are ableto do twice as much with one less brush ”

Turf Brush half page:Layout 1 21/7/11 19:41 Page 1

left field and buy a dedicated sprayer and a more general-purpose utility vehicle.

The latter need not have the heavy-duty capacity or fixed for-ward speed ability of a big Toro, Cushman or Deere, but if your need is to help move personnel and kit around, an entry-level petrol model may be the way to go. Take Kawasaki Mule 610 and Polaris Ranger 400.

These machines have a relatively low initial purchase price and are reasonably cheap to run, despite the need to run on petrol.

There are also diesel powered models to consider, such as the evergreen Kawasaki Diesel Mule, together with alternatives from companies such as Club Car, Bobcat, Kubota, JCB to name a few.

The key is to establish the dif-ference between basic utility units designed to have a light footprint and modest load capacity and machines that have a bigger payload and the ability to power attachments.

Often overlooked are battery powered electric vehicles. These tend to go in and out of fashion, but there is no denying these tools do have a future.

Polaris, for example are selling increasingly large numbers of its Ranger E, essentially sharing the same chassis as its Ranger 400 sib-ling with the result of it delivering good performance in more extreme conditions.

However, there are other electric models to consider. These include vehicles that can be specified in road legal form, with Ransomes Jacobsen having recently taken over the importation from France of the Mega electric truck range.

This is quite a significant move as Ransomes Jacobsen will no doubt help promote the greater use of this type of vehicle on golf courses. In terms of cost, a road ready electric truck will cost a similar amount of money as a heavy-duty ‘turf truck’; well worth a look.

Regardless of what is on offer, the key to selecting the right utility vehicle is to work out what it has to do.

Heavy-duty models fit the bill per-fectly when used as ‘self-propelled’ sprayers and top dressers, but they may not be the most economical choice as a general carrier.

If you can take the time to shop around and try several vehicles for a few days, you stand a much better chance of choosing the right tool.

When it comes to personnel transport, the key is to look to a lighter utility that can also carry a modest load. Space for essential tools, replacement greens flags, rakes or whatever will soon be exploited, so a large load platform is a help.

ABOVE: Battery powered utilities are not new, but the concept of road legal models has yet to gain as wide acceptance in the Uk as it has on the Continent. the Mega range imported by Ransomes Jacobsen could change that.

LEFT: More serious off-road ability may not be necessary, so check how well a vehicle on turf-friendly tyres performs on fine turf by doing the odd tight turn. All-wheel drive has it pros and cons, even when a proper differential with locking diff lock comes as part of the package.

It really is worth taking the trouble to have a demonstration of alternative vehicles;

Deere Gator and toro Workman controls, for example, have essential features in

common but the designs are more different than the spec sheet suggest.

JUNE 2012 GI 4746 GI JUNE 2012

UtILItY VeHICLeS

top-class roller mowers

the outfrontflail mower

...it’s way outfront!

Mowers for Professionals!

www.wessexmachinery.co.uk A Broadwood International productBritish manufacturing excellence since 1962

Call us for a free demo, for a free brochure oryour nearest dealer today on 01420 478111

in widths from 1.8 to 4.8m

RMX

TGX

GK05

12

Get a step ahead

To see for yourself visit:www.sgmindustries.com/promo_video

with the TB 200 Turf BrushThe ultimate instrength, quality,durability and easeof operation.• Yes it will fill aeration holes• Yes Greenkeepers say you use upto 30% less sand

• By using the brush regularly, every2 to 3 weeks, you can virtuallyeliminate verti grooming

• Use before mowing increasesputting speed and smoothness

“The TB 200 Turf Brush is one of the most effective groomingtools I have purchased in the past twenty years”

“ I never thought there could be anything better than what Iwas using, then you brought me the TB 200 and we are ableto do twice as much with one less brush ”

Turf Brush half page:Layout 1 21/7/11 19:41 Page 1

48 GI JUNE 2012 JUNE 2012 GI 49

he spends plenty of time on the golf course!

The Section would like to extend their thanks to South Ayrshire Council for allowing us the use of the Belleisle golf course, always an enjoyable experience. As there are only limited catering facilities at Bel-leisle we retired to the Abbots-ford hotel, where we enjoyed an excellent two-course meal in a private room, so thanks to all the staff in the hotel for look-ing after us. I’m sure it will be recommended as a good venue by everyone in attendance.

The only other news I have is that George Morrison is doing a bit of bird watching, looking out for that elusive stork arriving, hopefully with a soft landing George.

The BIGGA national tourna-ment is at Bogside this year on the 8 and 9 of October, so get it in your diary and let’s have a good turn out from the section.

If there is anything happen-ing on your course, or with our members in Ayrshire, or anything else that may be of interest, please get in touch with me by e-mail on duncan@lawnsforyou.com.

All the best for the season.

Northern region

North East

I shall remember April 18, 2012, at South Shields G. C. for a long time, and it’s not just me, but also other members of the Committee of the North East Section, as it was the worst turn out ever for a Competition. I don’t know what the answer is; we have tried changing the day of the week and teeing off time, yet still we struggle. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could get just one person from a golf club where they have more than one member of the Assiocation, What a difference that would make.

Now getting back to Competi-tion; what a pleasure it was to play the course, which is kept in excellent condition by Phil Hargave and his staff. The greens were superb and I reckon you wont see any better than them this year despite having the driest March on record and the wettest April. Lucky for us it only rained for the first hour,

but another ten minutes and we would have walked off it was that bad, but we carried on and enjoyed the rest of the course. Thank you to the catering staff for the great meal.

Now for the scores: Best Gross - J. Gibson 79, Northumberland GC, Best Nett R. Reid 72 on count back. J.S.Richardson 72, R. Black 87.

Thank you to Glen Baxter of Rigby Taylor and Alan Morton of T.S.L. and Wearside GC for donating prizes on the day.

I have received news from Tommy Harrison, Gosforth GC, of movement from his place; Andy Jeffries has left and become a self-employed landscaper, Chris Walker been promoted to first assistant and Connor Bush has been taken on as an apprentice; good luck to you all

That’s it for another month; let’s hope that we start getting some sunshine and not as much rain.

Jimmy Richardson

Northern

Well here we go folks, the sec-tion golf days are under-way. The forecast for the first event at Easingwold was pretty poor, but 30 of us mad golfers made the effort. A huge thanks and my respect to you guys who made it , we got a little wet, but eh we are used to it!

Even bigger thanks go to Eas-ingwold golf club for allowing us to play and of course Andre and the boys for working so hard to present a great course in testing conditions. We had a fantastic prize table provided by John Hughes the pro, which was kindly sponsored by Sherriff Amenity and the lovely Rebecca, thank you very much indeed.

Congratulations to Dave Col-lins who cleaned up by winning the Division one trophy and the Scratch trophy...

Div one: 1st Dave Collins, 2nd Stu Mason, 3rd A baxter

Div two: 1st R. Smith, 2nd N Booth, 3rd F Stewart

Div three: 1st G Street, 2nd J Baxter, 3rd J Rowbottom

Nearest pins: Stu Mason & A Scaman; Trade prize winner: I Collitt. The next event will be The Presidents day at Scarcroft golf club on the 27 June with a 1.30 tee off, so come on guys

put a shift in and come and support the section. We will be having a brisk EGM regarding the Treasurers position, we have a candidate who has come forward, but if anybody else fan-cies the role please let me know.

On the fixture list you all have we noticed a wee error, the Shef-field match up will be played at Howley Hall and not Meltham as stated. Whoops. Anybody wishing to play in this please let me no asap, or I will be pestering you lot at the next event.

And finally I end with some lovely news about our commit-tee member Richard Smith, he and Elizebeth are expecting there 2nd child in October! Congratulations big fellow, you never know we might have a whip round and get you some new golf shoes! He plays and works in his white golf shoes; I think they were white.

Last but not least, it was great to see Ben and Steve from Scar-borough make it to Easingwold, fantastic effort boys.

Any goss, news, please let me know... Any of you guys suc-cessful in getting on to the open support team?

Andy Slingsby, 07506407867 Slingsbyfamily@virginmedia.

com ; Facebook Andy Slingsby (spiderman)

North West

Hi all,Well the golf season is cer-

tainly up and running and we’ve had the spring tournament, which was held at Leasowe GC. A turn out of about 30 played in good conditions on this seaside links. First of all let me thank Leasowe GC for the courtesy of the course, the catering staff for the meal and the Head green-keeper Chris Peddie and his staff for the presentation, which made it such an enjoyable day.

The winner was Craig Morris with a score of 36points, which was a three-way tie. Triumphing with a back 9 count back with two other competitors who were John Mcgloughlin and Chris Gibson.

The longest drive and nearest pin prizes were picked up by Billy Merritt and John Mclough-lin. Well done to everybody on the day.

There are a couple of people moving this month; Neil olferey is moving out of our area and down to Exeter, so good luck

Scotland

Central

The Section had an enjoyable day at Crail for their spring outing with over 50 players par-ticipating on a course that was in excellent condition. Although the overnight and early morn-ing weather was grim, by the time golf started it was a pretty decent day. The full list of win-ners are on the website, but by the principal the winners on the day were as follows:

Best Scratch, Gordon Moir, St Andrews Links, beating Stuart Robertson, Strathmore Golf Centre by a shot. Best overall nett, Kenny Mitchell, St Andrews Links. Paul Murphy of Fife Golf Trust won the 1st section and Shaun Anderson, Piperdam, won the 2nd. Kevin Brunton from Greentech won the trade prize. Our thanks go to Crail Golfing Society their staff and our Patrons for making the day such a success. The 2012 Pairs competition is well under-way and again results are on the website.

Congratulations to Sandy Reid who will be succeeding John Philp at Carnoustie Golf Links after John retires at the end of June.

There are a couple of dates for educational events. Eric Lyons of Guelph Uni in Canada will give a talk at Elmwood at the beginning of June while John Kaminski and Rick Latin from Penn State and Purdue Univer-sities respectively will give one on 12 July, also at Elmwood.

The results of the survey carried out recently will be analysed, this along with more information on the talks will be on the website. Thanks to all

who took part. www.biggacentralsection.org.

uk or join us on Facebook,Regards,Gordon Moir

East

Well gents, we had our spring outing at the Glen last Tuesday and the weather was perfectly acceptable this time in compari-son to the stormy day we had originally planned. Thirty-three attended and here is a list of all the winners:

Scratch winner 68 gross Philip Butler, Murrayfield Golf Club

1st class winner Keith Burgon, Hirsel Golf Club

Runner up, Grant Moran Mortonhall Golf Club

2nd class winner Stuart Fer-guson, Dundas Park Golf Club

Runner up, Ryan Mcculloch, Goswick Golf Club

3rd class winner Kenneth Mason, Longniddry Golf Club

Veterans winner Aalistair Holmes, Seahouses Golf Club

Best Nett winner Scott Cor-rigan, Greenburn Golf Club

Apprentice prize James Balmbro, Hirsel Golf Club

Trade winner, Stewart Clay-ton, Greensman limited

Novelty prizes nearest the pin at the13th hole, Pat Allan, Symbio

Longest drive at the 18th hole, James Johnston, Greenburn Golf Club

The Glen was very hospitable and Des Kerr, Course Manager, and his staff had the course in top condition. I played with the Captain Mr. Mike Curry, who was very impressed with the way we, as a section, went about our business, so well done to all of you for attending and I hope you all enjoyed your day. Well

done to George Stavert again for making it on the day, but next time bring your clubs George. A big thanks again to Stuart Ferguson for all the administra-tion and planning on the day. Hopefully we will see the sun soon and get some heat from it to help the links grow as this last month has been too cold, fingers crossed.

Stewart Crawfords.crawford@live.co.uk

West

Just a couple of things to mention for the section news, the main item being the recent retirement of Peter Boyd as regional administrator after 14 years of service. Peter finished on the 20 April and the west section committee had a small get together of all those people who had been involved with him over the years through commit-tee work. A dinner was arranged at the citation restaurant in town and 12 people from the west turned up along with 4 from the Ayrshire section, all in attendance appeared to enjoy themselves and were delighted to be part of the evening. The section would like to wish Peter an enjoyable retirement and hope we that he can enjoy some more time with his wife Eleanor and the family.

I attended the annual match against the secretaries on Luff-ness New course on 8 May. The course was absolutely superb for the time of year and David Coull explained all the differ-ent projects he had completed over the last few years to help improve the course. I thoroughly enjoyed the course and the company and even better, the greenkeepers won. I would like to express my thanks to all those

involved in the day which helped make it such a success: Stuart Greenwood, Peter Boyd, Tony Yates, Brian and Julie Denholm and the house staff.

The next big event to consider is the Scottish National Tourna-ment over Ratho Park golf club on the 20 June; entries have to be submitted to the head office at Aldwark Manor.

I will report on the spring outing results in the next issue and once again if anybody has any information for me could they please get in contact on stuart.taylor@glasgowgolf-club.com or by mobile on 07790823914 or 0141 94 5554.

Hope you have a good season,Stuart Taylor

ayrshire

The spring outing of the Ayr-shire section, which includes Dumfries and Galloway, was held on arguably the best municipal golf course in the UK, Belleisle in Ayr, on Tuesday 1, May.

The course was in excellent condition thanks to the efforts of Billy, Kevin and the rest of the greenkeeping team, and the weather was kind for a wee change, especially after the rigours of Turnberry in the autumn.

The scoring reflected this as four players beat their handicap on the day. The prize winners were: First class winner - Wil-liam Mcmeikan 38 points, 2nd - David Nelson 37 points, 3rd - Ian Mcdonald 35 points, 4th - Ian Barr 34 points. Second class winner - David Wason 40 points, 2nd - Gregor Wilson 33 points, 3rd - Martin Lothian 30 points, 4th - Barry Crate 24 points. Stewart Clayton won the trade prize with a score that suggests

around The greenall the latest news from your Section

Section Notes

Please email your notes to

scott@bigga.co.uk

by the 15th

of the month

Section Notes

Please email your notes to

scott@bigga.co.uk

by the 15th

of the month

48 GI JUNE 2012 JUNE 2012 GI 49

he spends plenty of time on the golf course!

The Section would like to extend their thanks to South Ayrshire Council for allowing us the use of the Belleisle golf course, always an enjoyable experience. As there are only limited catering facilities at Bel-leisle we retired to the Abbots-ford hotel, where we enjoyed an excellent two-course meal in a private room, so thanks to all the staff in the hotel for look-ing after us. I’m sure it will be recommended as a good venue by everyone in attendance.

The only other news I have is that George Morrison is doing a bit of bird watching, looking out for that elusive stork arriving, hopefully with a soft landing George.

The BIGGA national tourna-ment is at Bogside this year on the 8 and 9 of October, so get it in your diary and let’s have a good turn out from the section.

If there is anything happen-ing on your course, or with our members in Ayrshire, or anything else that may be of interest, please get in touch with me by e-mail on duncan@lawnsforyou.com.

All the best for the season.

Northern region

North East

I shall remember April 18, 2012, at South Shields G. C. for a long time, and it’s not just me, but also other members of the Committee of the North East Section, as it was the worst turn out ever for a Competition. I don’t know what the answer is; we have tried changing the day of the week and teeing off time, yet still we struggle. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could get just one person from a golf club where they have more than one member of the Assiocation, What a difference that would make.

Now getting back to Competi-tion; what a pleasure it was to play the course, which is kept in excellent condition by Phil Hargave and his staff. The greens were superb and I reckon you wont see any better than them this year despite having the driest March on record and the wettest April. Lucky for us it only rained for the first hour,

but another ten minutes and we would have walked off it was that bad, but we carried on and enjoyed the rest of the course. Thank you to the catering staff for the great meal.

Now for the scores: Best Gross - J. Gibson 79, Northumberland GC, Best Nett R. Reid 72 on count back. J.S.Richardson 72, R. Black 87.

Thank you to Glen Baxter of Rigby Taylor and Alan Morton of T.S.L. and Wearside GC for donating prizes on the day.

I have received news from Tommy Harrison, Gosforth GC, of movement from his place; Andy Jeffries has left and become a self-employed landscaper, Chris Walker been promoted to first assistant and Connor Bush has been taken on as an apprentice; good luck to you all

That’s it for another month; let’s hope that we start getting some sunshine and not as much rain.

Jimmy Richardson

Northern

Well here we go folks, the sec-tion golf days are under-way. The forecast for the first event at Easingwold was pretty poor, but 30 of us mad golfers made the effort. A huge thanks and my respect to you guys who made it , we got a little wet, but eh we are used to it!

Even bigger thanks go to Eas-ingwold golf club for allowing us to play and of course Andre and the boys for working so hard to present a great course in testing conditions. We had a fantastic prize table provided by John Hughes the pro, which was kindly sponsored by Sherriff Amenity and the lovely Rebecca, thank you very much indeed.

Congratulations to Dave Col-lins who cleaned up by winning the Division one trophy and the Scratch trophy...

Div one: 1st Dave Collins, 2nd Stu Mason, 3rd A baxter

Div two: 1st R. Smith, 2nd N Booth, 3rd F Stewart

Div three: 1st G Street, 2nd J Baxter, 3rd J Rowbottom

Nearest pins: Stu Mason & A Scaman; Trade prize winner: I Collitt. The next event will be The Presidents day at Scarcroft golf club on the 27 June with a 1.30 tee off, so come on guys

put a shift in and come and support the section. We will be having a brisk EGM regarding the Treasurers position, we have a candidate who has come forward, but if anybody else fan-cies the role please let me know.

On the fixture list you all have we noticed a wee error, the Shef-field match up will be played at Howley Hall and not Meltham as stated. Whoops. Anybody wishing to play in this please let me no asap, or I will be pestering you lot at the next event.

And finally I end with some lovely news about our commit-tee member Richard Smith, he and Elizebeth are expecting there 2nd child in October! Congratulations big fellow, you never know we might have a whip round and get you some new golf shoes! He plays and works in his white golf shoes; I think they were white.

Last but not least, it was great to see Ben and Steve from Scar-borough make it to Easingwold, fantastic effort boys.

Any goss, news, please let me know... Any of you guys suc-cessful in getting on to the open support team?

Andy Slingsby, 07506407867 Slingsbyfamily@virginmedia.

com ; Facebook Andy Slingsby (spiderman)

North West

Hi all,Well the golf season is cer-

tainly up and running and we’ve had the spring tournament, which was held at Leasowe GC. A turn out of about 30 played in good conditions on this seaside links. First of all let me thank Leasowe GC for the courtesy of the course, the catering staff for the meal and the Head green-keeper Chris Peddie and his staff for the presentation, which made it such an enjoyable day.

The winner was Craig Morris with a score of 36points, which was a three-way tie. Triumphing with a back 9 count back with two other competitors who were John Mcgloughlin and Chris Gibson.

The longest drive and nearest pin prizes were picked up by Billy Merritt and John Mclough-lin. Well done to everybody on the day.

There are a couple of people moving this month; Neil olferey is moving out of our area and down to Exeter, so good luck

Scotland

Central

The Section had an enjoyable day at Crail for their spring outing with over 50 players par-ticipating on a course that was in excellent condition. Although the overnight and early morn-ing weather was grim, by the time golf started it was a pretty decent day. The full list of win-ners are on the website, but by the principal the winners on the day were as follows:

Best Scratch, Gordon Moir, St Andrews Links, beating Stuart Robertson, Strathmore Golf Centre by a shot. Best overall nett, Kenny Mitchell, St Andrews Links. Paul Murphy of Fife Golf Trust won the 1st section and Shaun Anderson, Piperdam, won the 2nd. Kevin Brunton from Greentech won the trade prize. Our thanks go to Crail Golfing Society their staff and our Patrons for making the day such a success. The 2012 Pairs competition is well under-way and again results are on the website.

Congratulations to Sandy Reid who will be succeeding John Philp at Carnoustie Golf Links after John retires at the end of June.

There are a couple of dates for educational events. Eric Lyons of Guelph Uni in Canada will give a talk at Elmwood at the beginning of June while John Kaminski and Rick Latin from Penn State and Purdue Univer-sities respectively will give one on 12 July, also at Elmwood.

The results of the survey carried out recently will be analysed, this along with more information on the talks will be on the website. Thanks to all

who took part. www.biggacentralsection.org.

uk or join us on Facebook,Regards,Gordon Moir

East

Well gents, we had our spring outing at the Glen last Tuesday and the weather was perfectly acceptable this time in compari-son to the stormy day we had originally planned. Thirty-three attended and here is a list of all the winners:

Scratch winner 68 gross Philip Butler, Murrayfield Golf Club

1st class winner Keith Burgon, Hirsel Golf Club

Runner up, Grant Moran Mortonhall Golf Club

2nd class winner Stuart Fer-guson, Dundas Park Golf Club

Runner up, Ryan Mcculloch, Goswick Golf Club

3rd class winner Kenneth Mason, Longniddry Golf Club

Veterans winner Aalistair Holmes, Seahouses Golf Club

Best Nett winner Scott Cor-rigan, Greenburn Golf Club

Apprentice prize James Balmbro, Hirsel Golf Club

Trade winner, Stewart Clay-ton, Greensman limited

Novelty prizes nearest the pin at the13th hole, Pat Allan, Symbio

Longest drive at the 18th hole, James Johnston, Greenburn Golf Club

The Glen was very hospitable and Des Kerr, Course Manager, and his staff had the course in top condition. I played with the Captain Mr. Mike Curry, who was very impressed with the way we, as a section, went about our business, so well done to all of you for attending and I hope you all enjoyed your day. Well

done to George Stavert again for making it on the day, but next time bring your clubs George. A big thanks again to Stuart Ferguson for all the administra-tion and planning on the day. Hopefully we will see the sun soon and get some heat from it to help the links grow as this last month has been too cold, fingers crossed.

Stewart Crawfords.crawford@live.co.uk

West

Just a couple of things to mention for the section news, the main item being the recent retirement of Peter Boyd as regional administrator after 14 years of service. Peter finished on the 20 April and the west section committee had a small get together of all those people who had been involved with him over the years through commit-tee work. A dinner was arranged at the citation restaurant in town and 12 people from the west turned up along with 4 from the Ayrshire section, all in attendance appeared to enjoy themselves and were delighted to be part of the evening. The section would like to wish Peter an enjoyable retirement and hope we that he can enjoy some more time with his wife Eleanor and the family.

I attended the annual match against the secretaries on Luff-ness New course on 8 May. The course was absolutely superb for the time of year and David Coull explained all the differ-ent projects he had completed over the last few years to help improve the course. I thoroughly enjoyed the course and the company and even better, the greenkeepers won. I would like to express my thanks to all those

involved in the day which helped make it such a success: Stuart Greenwood, Peter Boyd, Tony Yates, Brian and Julie Denholm and the house staff.

The next big event to consider is the Scottish National Tourna-ment over Ratho Park golf club on the 20 June; entries have to be submitted to the head office at Aldwark Manor.

I will report on the spring outing results in the next issue and once again if anybody has any information for me could they please get in contact on stuart.taylor@glasgowgolf-club.com or by mobile on 07790823914 or 0141 94 5554.

Hope you have a good season,Stuart Taylor

ayrshire

The spring outing of the Ayr-shire section, which includes Dumfries and Galloway, was held on arguably the best municipal golf course in the UK, Belleisle in Ayr, on Tuesday 1, May.

The course was in excellent condition thanks to the efforts of Billy, Kevin and the rest of the greenkeeping team, and the weather was kind for a wee change, especially after the rigours of Turnberry in the autumn.

The scoring reflected this as four players beat their handicap on the day. The prize winners were: First class winner - Wil-liam Mcmeikan 38 points, 2nd - David Nelson 37 points, 3rd - Ian Mcdonald 35 points, 4th - Ian Barr 34 points. Second class winner - David Wason 40 points, 2nd - Gregor Wilson 33 points, 3rd - Martin Lothian 30 points, 4th - Barry Crate 24 points. Stewart Clayton won the trade prize with a score that suggests

around The greenall the latest news from your Section

Section Notes

Please email your notes to

scott@bigga.co.uk

by the 15th

of the month

Section Notes

Please email your notes to

scott@bigga.co.uk

by the 15th

of the month

50 GI JUNE 2012 JUNE 2012 GI 51

around The green around The greenWorzel with the new life down south. With any luck his able deputy Damian will get the pro-motion he deserves, but hey we are in the golf industry.

Matt Shimwell is leaving Hop-wood GC to work under deputy manager, Gwynn Davies, at The Mere GC, so good luck Matt.

Mere GC has had a busy month they also held a GTC H&S day, which was very well attended.

The next golf event will be played in June at Lymm GC for its North West v North Wales Team match. By this time you will all have your fixture lists as they have been sent out, but if anybody would like more infor-mation please contact Chris Sheehan.

On a lighter note, I had a chat with Paul Smith, Course Man-ager at Royal Lytham, this week and me, being on a Parkland, bemoaning the constant rain we seem to be getting in the North West, well Paul being on a links thinks it great apart from the fact that the ROUGH is getting a little thick and very penal, something for the pro’s to think about as the Open Champion-ship closes in.

Spencer Lloyd-Pyespencer@lloyd-pye.freeserve.

co.uk

North Wales

Let’s all hope that, now mid-summer is here, we can finally have some summer, because April and the beginning of May were hardly anything to get excited about. The spring tournament at Llangollen was a complete washout; thank-fully everyone took the day and disappointment in their stride and stayed for a drink and meal in the clubhouse. Although no meaningful golf was played on the day, I know we all enjoyed the meal, had a good chin-wag and a laugh. The golf has been rear-ranged to the 19 June. Anyone who paid to be on the original day will play free of charge, on a play only basis, food will not be included on the day. Anyone who would like to fill spots left vacant by replay drop outs will only have to pay towards the prize fund and ball sweep and

organise your own refreshment options with the catering staff.

A big thank you goes to Phil, Gaynor and the rest of the hos-pitality staff for their hard work and patience in feeding us all at once with some rather excellent food when they where organised on a completely different format.

Thank you also to Bob Hardy who came up with alternate dates as soon as we had to cancel.

In other news we welcome Jason Moody back from the dark side to greenkeeping as he has taken a position at The Plassey Leisure Park, welcome back Jason!

I think that’s about it for now, but I would like to hear from you all, please feel free to text, call or e-mail your news. All the best until next month,

Pete Maybury, e-mail, petemayb66@aol.com Mobile 07756001187 Facebook group North Wales B.I.G.G.A

Midland region

East Midlands

As the hose pipe ban got into full swing and the rivers and reservoirs started rapidly filling up following the coldest, wettest April for over twenty years the East Midlands Section played our Spring Tournament at Scraptoft Golf Club on Thursday 26 April. Many courses around the area had been closed due to the extreme weather conditions but Nigel White and his team, through lots of hard work, pro-duced an excellent golf course for the day. A well supported day, although there is always room for more people, saw Rus-sell Allen claim the Category 1 prize with Rob ‘local knowledge’ Duval and Adi Porter finishing second and third respectfully. In Category 2 Andy Marsh took first place, with Adrian Hen-shaw and James McShane also in the prizes. An East Midlands golf competition wouldn’t be complete without Garry Thur-man picking up a prize in the Trade/Associates category. Garry has continued to support this section for many years and his consistency is beginning to

gain legendary status, especially in the raffle!

Tacit sponsored the Nearest the Pin and Longest Drives for which the section is extremely grateful and was won by Russell Allen (again!)(NTP) and Adrian Henshaw (LD) for the green-keepers and Mick Marvel won Longest Drive for the Trade/Associates. Unfortunately no one from Trade/Associates managed to hit the green on their respective Nearest the Pin hole. The committee are also extremely grateful to the spon-sors of the day for their generos-ity, Sherriff Amenity, Campey, Platts Harris and Henton & Chattell and also to Scraptoft Golf Club who produced a first class meal and were also excel-lent hosts. It was noted that the menu didn’t include brussel sprouts this year... you know who you are!

So the Jubilee Bank Holiday has past us by now, all the bunting and ill fitting Union Jack hats are packed away, until Prince Harry gets spliced at least, and we can hopefully look forward to a good summer with happy golfers on our courses. The April wet weather, although inconvenient, was very wel-come, and with temperatures slowly starting to rise there is definitely the prospect of the country experiencing proper seasonal weather for the first time in many years.

On a final note invites to Nail-cote Hall for our Rigby Taylor sponsored Par 3 Competition will be out in the not too distant future, we are trying more and more to email invites because of the cost of postage so please make sure that we have your correct email address on file. You can easily update us by emailing your details to big-gaeastmid@gmail.com and we can keep you informed of events/matters within your section. That’s about it for now, the next issue will be my last... before the Olympics!

Thank you for calling, Greg Skinner07970 095264

Midland

Well after the unseasonably dry and hot March/April, the old prophecy of “it won’t know when to stop raining when it comes” has finely come true. There is nothing quite as rewarding as raking sodden wet sand day after day, I don’t think! Such wet weather reminds me of an old boy from Harborne, George Noyce/Formby son. When sent out to mow banking’s etc. on his Tri-king in the rain, under great sufferance and complaint I might add, he would take an umbrella with him. Who did he think he was, Mary Poppins? It was so funny though.

I hope that by the time our summer event is here on 11 July at Oxley Park G.C. that we have had some sunshine to warm our backs. I should be able to report the spring results in next month’s notes.

This month’s calendar sponsor is ALS. They offer a multitude of services including Course Equipment, Contract Works, Turf Care Products and Machinery Servicing etc. For their full range please visit: www.amenity.co.uk or Tel: 01952 641 949.

Sean McDade.

BB&o

As summer approaches and the golfing season kicks into full swing hopefully many of you will have managed to get your courses in to shape and completed all renovation/main-tenance work in what must be the wettest start to any drought on record! That said those of you impacted by the hosepipe ban will be enjoying the respite and are no doubt breathing a sigh of relief. As ever we have little con-trol over the biggest influencing factor – the weather! We wait to see what summer brings.

Kirtlington GC played host to this year’s BB&O Section Spring Cup. The day was well supported

with yet another fantastic turn-out. A special mention must go to Brett Moggridge and his team at Kirtlington who produced superb playing surfaces and a cracking course, which pre-sented a great test and golfing challenge. After some strong scoring throughout the field and despite recent shoulder surgery, Adam King was crowned the winner (on count back) with 36 points, second was Dan Lightfoot, and third place going to Phil Beeny. The nearest the pin on the 4th went to Graham Gardener, nearest the pin on the 16th went to Paul Young and the longest drive on the 18th went to Phil Beeny. A big thank you must go to the John Deere dealerships of God-freys Golf and Turf and Farel’s who jointly sponsored the entire day. Their support is greatly appreciated and without them the golf days could not happen. Full results can be viewed on the section website: www.bbo-greenkeepers.co.uk In other news from around the section, Peter Larter is retiring at the end of the month and so steps down from his post as Northern and Midland Regional Officer.

We would like to wish him well and thank him for all his work and effort over the years supporting BIGGA and in particular the BB&O Section. The BIGGA Midland Regional Educational Conference had to be postponed, however it is to be rearranged for a date later in the year. The Buckinghamshire Golf Club is hosting The Ladies British Masters 15-18 August and is looking for volunteers to help with the support team. Anyone who is interested please contact the Course Manager: andy.ewence@buckingham-shiregc.co.uk

The next Section golf day is to be held at Temple Golf Club. Dates, entry forms, including the Rigby Taylor pairs knock-out competition, jobs and information can be found at the BB&O website.

If anyone has any news, views or ideas for the BB&O section then please don’t hesitate to get in touch: bbo-scribe@gmail.com or contact the committee/Matt Nutter: bbosecretray@gmail.com

Or keep up to date with the BB&O section by following us on Twitter, Facebook and the website: www.bbogreenkeep-ers.co.uk

South East region

East anglia

Here we go again then. Our rather small, but perfectly formed band braved the wind and the rain and all had a very good day at Waldring-field. My personal memories of Waldringfield were three portacabins and a course in its infancy. An absolutely terrific clubhouse has replaced the portacabins and the course has developed into a good test of golf, which is maturing nicely – (just like me some say, others tell the truth!) Thanks in no small part to Keith Tishall and his crew.

Some managed to stay out of the gorse, unlike me who is still pulling thorns from by backside. They are as follows:

0 – 9 Handicap: 1st Jonathan Smart, 36 Points, 2nd Nick Brewster, 35 Points. 10 – 18 Handicap: 1st Chris Davies, 37 Points, 2nd Toni Thacker, 33 Points. 19 – 28 Handicap – Real Golfers: 1st Andy Baker, 40 Points, 2nd Keith Titshall, 37 Points. Trade & Guests: 1st Trevor Hurn, 40 Points, 2nd, Steve Creasey, 39 Points. Nearest Pin: Nick Brewster. Longest Drive: Chris Davies. Loo Seat – Mike Virley: While practising thinned one and nearly destroyed the Pro shop. Nice one!

The main sponsors of the day were Bartram and Ransomes Jacobson and the prizes were presented by Nigel Church.

Other sponsors were Ait-kens, Tacit, Toro, Collier Turf Care, Brian Lindores and Headland.

Thanks again Waldringfield for a lovely, if a little damp day, Steve Creasey for his welcom-ing speech and the catering staff for the welcoming meal.

Pause for thought: I recently heard of a professional taking over the running of a course. The person telling me said: “Well he is a professional and he should know how to make good greens”! My reply was “Bobby Charlton was a great footballer, but I bet he couldn’t mark the pitch out”.

Mick Lathrope

Surrey

Monday May 7. Where has this month gone too? It seems only yesterday that I wrote last month’s report. So, to stop me saying the same thing next month, I ought to write July’s tomorrow! If that hasn’t confused you, it has me. They say that no news is good news, but when one has to keep avid readers happy every month it isn’t, so come on all of you lot out there give me news, news!

Anthony Freeman has been appointed course manager at Merrist Wood GC and I am sure that he will make it a success-ful move. Best wishes from all members of Surrey section.

Chelsea beat Liverpool in the cup final; you have only your-selves to blame when I have to resort to football results. Tony Bremer has only just recovered from deep depression after watching the game whilse Ian Sellers is still buying everyone drinks.

My new home in Dorking is improving daily and since no longer driving around the South East of England every day I have lost over a stone in weight. Is it a new diet? No it’s since semi retirement I can’t afford a decent meal!

My old 5th form class had a re-union after leaving school 50 years ago. Unlike me my class mates all looked so ancient as did our school. The building has the same floors, doors and central heating system as when we left it in 1962. The school is now all girls and several of us were interviewed by the pupils about life when we were inmates and how the capital punishment, cane, slipper and blackboard rubber were the daily norm and as our teachers said, would benefit us for future life. We even had a visit from our old history master, Brian Bunker; you can probably guess his nickname.

That’s it until Blackmore GC for the next golf day and the result of which will occupy space in July’s jottings.

Brian Willmott Brian.willmott @hotmail.

co.uk

Name: James Bledgeage: 32Club: gWestPosition: Senior GreenkeeperNickname: Bledger

1. How long have you been greenkeeping? 15 years

2. What was it about the career that attracted you? Being involved in golf, working out doors and working with tractors!

3. If you weren’t a greenkeeper what do you think you’d be? I’d probably be a farmer, although I’d love to have been a golf course photographer or a musician! 4. Which task do you most enjoy doing and why? Using excavators during course construction, I get a great deal of satisfaction and sense of achievement from seeing the finished article.

5. Which task do you least enjoy doing and why? Picking stones, gWest is a new build and even though we have 97% grass cover they just keep coming to the surface! I have never seen so many stones! If I never see another stone again it will be too soon!

6. What one thing - other than a pay rise - would improve the greenkeepers’ lot? In our region (Perthshire, Scotland) a little bit of decent weather wouldn’t go amiss!

7. Hobbies? Golf, playing guitar and writing/recording music

8. Favourite Band? Oceansize

9. Which team do you support? Queen Of The South!

10. What is your claim to fame? My band opened the Main Stage at the Wickerman Festival, playing with the Buzzcocks and Spiritualized.

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